I found this article online:

Prayer is a necessity to mankind because he is incurably religious. It is a universal phenomenon. While not exclusively Christian, it is most real in Christianity because the Christian life is a life of fellowship with God. In no other religion do we find such prayers as are found uttered by men like Moses, David and Paul.

In Biblical religion, the relationship between God and man is genuinely interpersonal. Some things are brought to pass only as man prays (1Tim. 2:1-4). Prayer is essentially communion. God desires man's fellowship, and man needs the friendship of God.

As a many-faceted phenomenon, prayer includes the following elements:

• communion
• adoration
• thanksgiving
• confession
• petition
• intercession
• submission

The pivotal factor in prayer is attitude.

Posture, language, place or time do not matter. Man's heart must be in rapport with God. Jesus has left us an unsurpassed and perfect example of the importance of prayer in one's life (the Lord's Prayer in Matthew 6).

The following principles are regulative in prayer:
Prayer avails only as

• it is made in faith (Heb. 11:6; Matt. 17:20),
• in the Name of Jesus (John 14:13; 15:16),
• in keeping with the Will of God (1John 5:14,15),
• under the direction and dynamic of the Holy Spirit (Jude 20),
• by a suppliant who has confessed and renounced sin (Ps. 66:18; Isa. 59:1,2),
• by a forgiving heart (Matt. 6:14-15),
• in a context of harmonious relationships on the human level (Matt. 5:23,24; 18:19),
• with persistence (Luke 11:5-8; 18:1-8).

From the standpoint of human responsibility, prayer is the major element in the out-working of God's redemptive program (1Tim. 2:1-4). Neglect of prayer is a sin (1Sam. 12:23).

That last sentence is a bit scary !! However looking at it :

23 As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by failing to pray for you. And I will teach you the way that is good and right.

I think that it has been misconstrued as its regarding praying for a person and not about prayer as a whole.

What does Prayer Mean?

It's interesting to know how a dictionary defines prayer . here are some definitions:

1.	a devout petition to God or an object of worship.

2.	a spiritual communion with God or an object of worship, as in supplication, thanksgiving, adoration, or confession.

3.	the act or practice of praying to God or an object of worship.

4.	a formula or sequence of words used in or appointed for praying: the Lord's Prayer.

5.	prayers, a religious observance, either public or private, consisting wholly or mainly of prayer.

6.	that which is prayed for.

7.	a petition; entreaty.

8.	the section of a bill in equity, or of a petition, that sets forth the complaint or the action desired.

Prayer includes worship. So does that mean that singing, reading the Bible , fellowship with christian brothers and sisters can be counted as prayer?

Throw yourself into prayer

He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap. EC 11:4

Do we have passion within us to pray? we think we know the answer. Sometimes passion is evident, say you are going through a tough situation and all hope is exhausted except prayer then passion sure gets visible. . atleast in my case :) . At times its not visible until you hit the knees and begin to pray, at some point it springs out, for a Christian has the fire within with a lot of combustible burden.

Waiting for the right mood to pray is not a worthy proposition, it can be like waiting for a sign and Jesus says in Matt 12:39 "and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas". Tough one :)

The Hymn 'What a friend we have in Jesus' has excellent lyrics on Prayer:

What a friend we have in Jesus,

All our sins and griefs to bear,

What a privilege to carry,

Everything to God in prayer;

Oh, what peace we oftern forfeit

Oh, what needless pain we bear,

All because we do not carry,

Everything to God in prayer

Lets throw ourselves into prayer, its not always a pleasant experience but its fruit would be.

The Power of Prayer

Just wanted to share this interesting article by Kathryn Warren:

The Power of Prayer

Prayer - what is the right way?

I often used to think to myself what is the best way to pray. Often I would listen to people praying and felt that my prayer style was inadequate . Questions arose in my mind like: How often should I pray in a day?, How long should I pray for? How should I pray?etc . I guess God heard my questions and led me to watch a Joyce Meyer program on the very subject. I felt much better after it and learnt the following things:
1) Pray as who God made you to be . If you like using words like 'cool' or 'brill' go ahead and use it.
Prayer is not supposed to be dull and monotonous but full of passion.
2) Pray as if you're talking to a best friend - after all God is our best friend
3) Prayer doesn't have to be of a certain length . Start and then finish - could be 5 mins or could be an hour - it really doesn't matter
4) You can pray whilst doing everyday tasks - like when you are washing the dishes or watering the plants - can be a one line prayer ' Thank you Father for the beautiful plants you have created' for example is a prayer
So, really there is not right or wrong way. Just pray the way you are :-)

Sacrifice the Present for the Future

Sacrifice the Present for the Future. This is the thought I got this morning. There are times when we might feel too vexed with the way things are in our life but its important that we learn to sacrifice the present for the future instead of trying to indulge in the things pertaining to our flesh.

HEB 12:2 says "Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the JOY that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God". This verse shows us that Jesus endured the pain for the glorious Joy that was set before Him.

Prayer is not always an aspect of joy rather its a sacrifice, a hardwork, an effort. We should put in a conscious effort at sacrificing the present by choosing to spend time in seeking the things of God to gain a joyful future. Prayer is the stepping stone to a successful Christian life.

my pic

Hi this is my pic thats more than a

year old, got no latest pics so you got to put up with this. Haven't changed much though :)

Prayer is talking to God

Prayer is communication to God. When we pray it should come from the heart, how we express our feeling to God. The holy spirit helps a believer in prayer. Romans 8:26 - In the same way, the spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the spirit, because the spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will.

my attempt at Praying

I decided to spend some time in prayer yesterday night and began at 10 pm, I really felt it hard to go on but somehow managed to put in the effort. The Bible says "Watch ye and Pray.. Mark 14:38". I think there is direct proportionality between our Prayers and a successful Christian life.
Anyway I hope to make an attempt tonight again :)

Idea on how to pray

Yesterday I was in a small prayer meeting where I was inspired to begin praying again. The speaker said that Prayer gives us power.

Without prayer I sensed that I become mediocre and marginal and uncertain and definitely a deteriorating Christian. Even in my business I sensed that regular prayer resulted in success and the lack of it in failure.

Many seem to know and acknowledge the importance of Prayer, even non-Christians seem to, but sadly it also seems to be a tedious, boring and mundane job.

We cannot do away with prayer nor can we expect for someone else to do ours always, so its best in our interest to discipline ourselves and begin to hit the knees :)


I made a brief plan on how to pray. I demarcated my needs:


Physical
Spiritual
Mental
Financial
Marital
Social
Prayer
Biblical
Humanity


one can also jot down various aspects that he wants to cover under each category. I think this way it allows you some free space when you begin to pray so that you don't need to think on your knees :) but keep praying..:)



I hope this blog generates ideas and inspiration to pray.



Humbly,
In Christ
Aurun